One of the biggest challenges in the mining industry is the inclusion of diversity; not only gender diversity - which becomes more evident during Women’s Month - but also different talents, viewpoints, experiences, knowledge, and realities, thus involving different perspectives:
- Gender: presence of women in the workplace.
- Intergenerational or age-related: integration of different generations in the workforce.
- Cultural and geographical: coexistence of various nationalities within an organization’s culture.
- Disability or different abilities: inclusion of diverse physical and mental conditions.
- Experience and knowledge: variety of roles and professions within the organizational ecosystem.
Within the mining value chain and to achieve higher levels of diversity, mining clients - in general - have subscribed to the agenda of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), thus opting to adhere to different pathways to increase diversity, among which the following stand out:
- Definition of specific objectives and targets for greater participation of a minority group, mostly women, within a defined timeframe.
- Diversity management, through the definition and implementation of policies, procedures, and/or guidelines at the People areas level, promoting improvements in selection and hiring processes, and/or mobility, as well as development.
- Diversity culture, by promoting best practices that foster a more diverse and inclusive environment, including particular ways of relating.
- Communication and dissemination of best practices, as well as trends and results.
The presence of this explicit commitment to greater diversity has allowed the industry to advance comprehensively in its sustainability agenda.
In the case of ME Elecmetal, diversity and inclusion - or rather, the inclusion of diversity - is part of our values. In fact, both “Respect for the dignity of people” and “Integral Human Development” support this statement. Likewise, our sustainability strategy incorporates the pillar “Our People,” which demonstrates the importance both globally and regionally of our workforce, with a presence of 20 nationalities across 5 continents, reaching nearly 2,000 people (1,966 employees) and representation from more than 40 countries. And for ME Elecmetal, a Chile-based company open to the world, this is a source of great pride and value.
In a series of stories, ME Elecmetal illustrates these realities representing the 20 nationalities, highlighting the powerful female talent and more.
“Cultural diversity at ME Elecmetal reflects the company's commitment to the human and professional development of its employees. Our sustainability strategy is based on the pillar «Our People», where multiculturalism plays a key role in creating inclusive, innovative, and collaborative work environments. This story cycle aims to highlight, through descriptions and experiences, what lies beyond nationalities and realities.”
ME Elecmetal’s drive, wherever it is present in the world, is to develop and act as a strategic mining partner with a single focus: a diverse team “thinking globally and acting locally” where every person counts both individually and collectively, regardless of whether they are women or men, older or younger, or where each one comes from. Despite the smaller but growing proportion of women in the workforce, we are convinced of the value of women, their strong commitment, and their incredible shared talent, so in this first year, this narrative aims to bring together the two main drivers and convictions of ME Elecmetal: multiculturalism and female talent.
This diversity approach, based on the company’s foremost characteristic and a fundamental part of the DNA of a global firm like ours, is multiculturalism, through which the team is built and strengthened, living a unique corporate collaboration culture that is the core of our corporate values, strongly supported by women spread across the world with powerful stories of talent, creativity, and resilience behind them. No matter where in the world we are contributing, when you see our blue color and our name, you will know this is a company like no other.
